Exhorder, Ringworm, Phobia, Slowhole & Hell Is Real - WC Social Club, February 19th 2026

I’d gotten the aggression out of my system, and I felt better knowing there were still plenty of metal icons out there alive and kicking.

The last concert I attended was Death Angel and Vio-lence at The Forge (22 W Cass St, Joliet, IL 60432) back in November 2025. Needless to say, The Metal Channel Editor Roger Schultz and I were dying to attend another show.

I checked out one of my favorite websites The Chicago Metal Factory (The CMF.com) for upcoming gigs and noticed Exhorder and Ringworm were playing the WC (West Chicago) Social Club (920 Roosevelt Rd, West Chicago, IL 60185).

This was a venue I hadn’t been to before and since the Brauer House (S Rohlwing Rd, Lombard, IL 60148) closed, I was looking for someplace new to fill the gap.

The WC Social Club was way better than I expected. It had a large bar, a decent food selection and surprisingly good acoustics. You could hear the bands on stage with surprising clarity. I wasn’t expecting a big turnout for this show because it was West Chicago on a Thursday night, but I guess a lot of people were itching to get out just like me. There were easily a couple hundred people on hand for the opening of this event.

The first group up was a local act from Chicago named Hell Is Real. With a strong hardcore meets’ death metal vibe, the group reminded me a lot of Connecticut’s Hatebreed. Motivating lyrics with powerful riffs, featuring an overall metalcore/deathcore sound. I researched the band and noticed they released their debut effort, Scared Of The World, independently back in 2024. I looked for a copy at their merch table hoping to purchase and review but there was nothing to be found. I’ll be keeping an eye on Hell Is Real, I think they showed some promise.

Next up was an atmospheric metal act named Slowhole. While I don’t necessarily appreciate climatic sludge metal, I definitely like incredible vocals, screeching guitars and gunshot-style drumming, which this group definitely had. What would have helped them win over the venue was crowd interaction. It would have been great to have heard song titles or perhaps the thought process behind them. Maybe that happened but I missed it. Either way Slowhole is a curious act, it will be interesting to see where they go from here.

Slowhole was followed by a notorious grindcore outfit from California known as Phobia. The group has existed in some form since 1990 but hasn’t released any new material since 2017’s Lifeless God. Their Socio-political, hate-punk style of music seemed to go over well with the crowd. I’d heard of this band previously but had never experienced them live. I must admit I was impressed. Their intensity was as unbridled as it was infectious. The WC Social Club seemed up for grabs, with bodies flying everywhere. The band’s set list was short and right to the point. Definitely a group I’d like to experience again.

Up next was Cleveland Ohio’s Ringworm. They’re a band that’s been active in some form since 1991. I started listening to them in 2001 when the album Birth Is Pain was released. My favorite record by the band is 2016’s Snake Church.

Ringworm was everything I expected. Straightforward thrash out of the gate, but with no shrieky cheesy yowls or fake death growls. I’m talking unrestrained hate spewed venom yelled at the top of the lungs.

I wasn’t at all familiar with the new material, but I must say the songs from Seeing Through Fire were great. The track” No Solace, No Quarter, No Mercy” has got to be one of the meanest most violent offerings I have heard in a long time.

The final act of the evening was Exhorder and I’ll admit I’d lost touch with the band. Honestly, it’s been years since I jammed an Exhorder record. The last time I saw them play live was at Medusa’s (3257 N Sheffield Ave, Chicago, IL 60657) opening for Entombed during the Clandestine tour. That was 1992. It’s not often that an Exhorder CD would make it into my player, but I have a feeling that’s about to change. Reading up on the band prior to the event, I noticed the group had landed a new guitarist. Pat O’Brien of Cannibal Corpse and Nevermore fame joined Exhorder as their lead guitarist.

Although I never met Pat, I’m a huge fan of the work he did on Gallery Of Suicide. It’s undoubtedly one of my favorite death metal albums of all time. I’m a huge fan of Nevermore, the work he did on the In Memory EP (1996) is truly amazing. The metal gods were on my side, I actually got to meet Pat and spent some time talking to him. In my mind, trend-setting guitarists like Pat are true metal icons. So few of our heroes survive today, we need to embrace the ones we still have instead of ignoring them for all too human indiscretions. Needless to say I purchased, Defectum Omnium, I plan on listening to it regularly.

Exhorder’s show was chock full of hits and very satisfying. The band seemed to be filled with enthusiasm. The set list had enough variation to appease all fans new and old. I left that night happy I’d experienced one of thrash metal’s most iconic bands once again.

As we drove home that night I was spent. I’d gotten the aggression out of my system, and I felt better knowing there were still plenty of metal icons out there alive and kicking. \m/